Fontaine
Sitemap Fontaine & Atlas * See also The_Smuggling_Operation * See also Fontaines_Lair * See also Neptune's_Bounty_Shootout * See also Burial At Sea turned Fontaine/Atlas into A Moron Frank Fontaine (AKA Atlas) at his core is a Grifter - a con man, a liar, a criminal. His sort of people lie even when they don't have to. He was intent on seizing power in Rapture, taking advantage of the freedom there. Funny thing is a man like that being destroyed by his own creation. Not a point made in the game He got a little too involved in his own 'con' and his ego led to his End. --- --- --- Fontaine, previously a small time criminal, became Mobster-ish (who is not Scar Face) ' : Already explained (elsewhere) why Fontaine's Smuggling activities just could NOT be all that large (even if significantly larger than anything we were shown in-game). Additional criminal ventures would be needed to ''make up the slack to enable Fontaine getting SUFFICIENT resources for the story's Genetic Research/Experiment/Development (Lucky he had so much amazing implausible talent available in Suchong/Tenenbaum, and Alexander later). * Importing drugs (high value - recreational as well as medicinal) and pushing them (rather than importing 'beef') - Note they weren't illegal * A Protection Racket is a traditional venture for thugs (strongarming methods for extortion payments) * Fontaine's forcing workers to pay him a percentage (what's that called - coersion)? * Preyed on the Poor (Loansharking ... perhaps why there were so many hiding in places like Paupers Drop). * Obtaining businesses through illegal means, at firesale prices. Its Only that such things could NOT get too bad (extensive) or the Citizens would be 'up in arms' (Press denumciation and official/unofficial law enforcements ...) --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 'BioShock Simplistic Plot - Needed Spicing Up (Psycho-drama) : ' Atlas 'helping' you through the game ... Oops now Ryan has killed Atlas's family, Oh Nooos. So Sad. Atlas even piped in sad music to make you feel his pain ... Yes, it did seem 'over the top' manipulation by the writers to convince you it was a good thing to help Atlas go murder Ryan : ' "Hey little boy, I'm your pal. Hey, this bad man ran over my puppy. You should go over to that bad man's house and murder him ..." ' (Player either goes along or quits) Unfortunately you are being led by the nose along this whole plot and you can't ask : ' "Hey, Atlas was right there. Why DOESN'T HE go and murder Ryan himself ? I mean I'm just the newbie here, so why isn't he getting his own revenge ??? SOmething is very wrong here ... " ' The writers ACTUALLY could have had a FAR BETTER story where you have more clues along the way that you were being manipulated by Atlas, and YOU finally figure out he IS controlling you BEFORE you get to Ryan (and has lied about just about everything), but NOW you cannot stop yourself and you robotically go through the motions and kill Ryan and THEN find out he was your father. Hitchcockian storytelling ... with YOU even trying to fight against the sociopath Fontaine controlling you, but you cannot. AND NOW you have a REAL reason to get Atlas in the remaining 1/3rd of the game. This can fit right in with My other 'better twist' : When at the end, you learn Ryan '''knew, and FAKED his own death to get Fontaine (that animatronic dummy, seen by a 4 years old ADAM-addled mutant). --- --- --- Did Fontaine Stash some of his Profits on The Surface ? (Plan Z) : ''' He had to sell some product of Rapture in trade for the incoming smuggled goods. It would require a good sized ongoing process/establishment for his Smuggling operation on the surface. Art/antiques/precious metals/Technology(?). Permanent organization, up there, to maximize the value of conversion by cutting out the middleman ("Fences" often give as little as 10 cents on the dollar....). Fontaine may have had at least some limited Surface resources (from before he came to Rapture) to get some Surface money to use to buy his initial Contraband. But that would only get him started, while he organized his permanent system. Fontaine (and any other smugglers) had to have contacts to obtain the Contraband goods, and to 'fence' the Rapture goods. Who did this and how much could he trust them ? Did he himself go (or send a trusted underling) to the Surface with any frequency, to supervise this operation? Might he have had 'investors' (did he have 'investors' among the rich who would have far more Surface resources to utilize ? ... from which he took a large 'cut' ?) Mafia/Organized crime surface connections ? Or do they take too much of the 'cut' themselves (them trying to muscle in would make a nice MMORPG side-plot), and would seek to have their own people eventually take over the 'operation' ? ("Hey Vinny, Why does this rigatoni taste like seaweed ? ") Where there other smugglers beside Fontaine of any real size ? Was there a 'syndicate' (at least at one time) ? Did he strong arm them/take THEM over as he did other lawful businesses ... how many murders ? This also begs the question about resources that Fontaine/Atlas might have called upon to fight the Civil War. (Reasons why he may have lasted so long). --- --- --- --- --- --- '''Another Two Faced ... : Perhaps with Atlas in BaSx being so fond of Lobotomy (a medical procedure and very odd detail in the game), it is plausible that Dr J. S. Steinman had killed Fontaine and made himself Atlas (maybe also explains why he doesn't know WYK). --- --- --- Atlas, Hangman : Scene of strung up people in (BaSx) Fontaine's Department store : "Turncoats" offers evidence of Atlas having a history of using such methods to terrorize opponents/followers. (No reason for Ryan to do such a thing, but very much for 'Atlas' trying to become 'the rebel leader' without others who assume they also 'have a say' ... The hangings in Apollo Square thus are likely this same 'Atlas' method of persuasion. --- --- --- BaSx "Atlas" ''' : Also the new DLC buildup of 'Atlas' as an '''already publicly-known revolutionary doesn't really fit. He should at that story's time be an unknown, or he WOULD have been locked up in Solitary at Persephone Penal Colony as a ringleader by Ryan. In Fontaine's (department store/mall prison) he is vulnerable, and should have been keeping his head down until he could escape. SO To have Fontaine's Mall not be converted into a prison before at least late November 1958 ??? (Ignoring the issues with the consistency of many of the Audio-Diary dates ...) That's still quite a while for the "problem" people at 'Home for the Poor'/Apollo Square to be on the loose threatening public safety. They would have been spotted very soon as Ryan's security started assessing all of Fontaine's operations/holdings/property gathering evidence. Assuming there were any Splicer survivors of the Neptune shootout, there had (?) to be others there (and across Rapture) who were part of the Smuggling Operation (the original indictment), and in the interim they (if already caught) were kept somewhere (them also being associated with Fontaine makes them being incarcerated in "Fontaine's" aprapos ). Who lived in that Apollo Square 'poorhouse' (or other similar establishments we never heard of) ? Not ALL residents necessarily were arrested (many were likely just there for something to eat/a place to sleep/or were coerced). If they weren't disruptive, then Ryan probably didn't want to waste resources locking them up AND to face a negative public opinion. Most of those locked up in Fontaine's were probably the crazy Splicer types, who were unpredictable and dangerous - thus NEEDING to be isolated. Did we see many normals in Fontaine's ?? - and any ADAM to create new ones would be in short supply. Vague. What actual numbers of people were really involved in all of this (other than the ones we saw evidenced in the game). In BaSx you have presented to you a much greater extent of Splicer violence in Rapture than was mentioned/implied before in BS1. Previously, upto that time, the rabble-rousing by 'Atlas' originating in Apollo Square wasn't impacting the City much, safety-wise - it likely was localized and minor as far as the public was concerned. Rich people partying "while Rapture Burns" is one thing, but obvious Chaos and Danger WOULD BE a serious issue reacted to by the rest of Rapture's population. I would think for Fontaine/Atlas being 'rounded up' was unplanned (not a good place to be, just the uncertainty of being imprisoned and significantly hampering his efforts/plans). Crazy Splicers might not listen to his practiced con-man talk, and could just as likely turn and kill him (evidence was shown they weren't really controllable). The whole situation (plot) is problematic anyway because Ryan's people would have gone over/investigated/searched the whole place to turn it into a proper prison (even while just while looking for evidence of Fontaine's crimes and investigating his now 'Seized' property) - that not leaving much for Atlas to work with. A simple warehouse 'prison' would have served far better and been easier to convert/control, and would be less problematic for Ryan - even just dealing with the displaced owners/workers of all the other businesses in "Fontaine's". Announcing it was "Back To Business, Under Honest Management" would have be a philosophical coup for Ryan. - In the more normal times violent Splicers were 'handled' by law enforcement, and it should have been alot less frequent (or the Newspapers would be covering the violence disrupting the city). Combat-Plasmids became ALOT more used once the 'civil War'/terrorist activity escalated. SO incidents may have been rare upto Kashmir (Fontaine's_Army mentioned by McDonagh - but even this is short of details to pin it down - the term seems to be talking about the NB Shootout, but technically doesn't actually say). That's the problem with alot of all this - even the evidence we are given in the game is vague. So we are chasing after logic with very few facts to go on. The 'Prison' inmates may be leftovers from the Neptunes Bounty Shootout, and others from 'dead' Fontaine's criminal organization across the city, and some (violent ones) from the 'poorhouses' and the 'protests', and ringleaders like Atlas. Later, it is hard to say how many of Sofia Lamb's followers were Splicers or non-Splicers. By later times, when there was probably alot less ADAM available (Little Sisters killed or getting too old), it (probably) was easier to control Splicers who had lost their power (when their Combat-Plasmids no longer work any more, and we also have years of time involved in that whole situation). Similar uncertainty about details for facilities at Persephone as to How they handled Splicers still with their powers (we saw isolation tanks and covered cells which might work for any non-Houdini (assuming that isn't a faked Teleport power as has been suggested). Ditto with the 'nationalization' ("Seizing" of the criminal-owned Fontaine Futuristics) - its timing, and making public the abused orphans (and maybe other children) made into Slug Hosts (Why wasn't that presented as a bigger deal ?????) Certainly there's the separate actions of the Investigations into ALL of Fontaine's 'Empire' (Ryan had to justify to the Public the actions he had taken (Attempted arrest resulting in the "Shootout") -- we certainly DID see an extensive investigation setup at Neptune's Bounty in the Wharf Masters Office by Sullivan). Fontaine probably had planned his death well in advance, and had been positioning resources (away from his existing establishments, which WOULD BE well searched ... THAT would have been smart of him). He would have to completely separate his new identity - IF Ryan found out about it then the whole 'We are Just Poor People Protesting' cover would turn into death warrants on Atlas. THAT'S why being trapped in "Fontaine's Department Store" was against his plans (and why it is Illogical to see him acting the 'Big Man' there, short of what he needed to do to simply escape). I think the Dates on the various Audio Diaries made the intervals rather tight (same for events of the whole BaSx DLC). How soon Fontaine's Department Store started being used as a Prison ? - We don't know (the whole Suchong events complicates/overlaps). Fontaine had lots of resources and with the ease that Booker/Elizabeth arrived he could have/should have (?) long previously escaped. --- --- --- . . . . . . . . . . . . Atlas, The Lobotomist : The procedure was created to be simple to perform and with the least sideeffects for the patient - IF you have the right tools ( an "orbitoclast"). Why Atlas/Fontaine should have one or know how to use it (or why one could be in Rapture, where purposefully mangling the tissue someone's brain is likely a violation of their Free Will -- that all isn't much answered). “Man named Steinman taught me this. He's a bit of a lunatic, but a fine surgeon. He calls this little trick a transorbital lobotomy.” Load of crap. Its not painful (for a torture) and leaves the patient a bit addled after the procedure (so EVEN LESS LIKELY to give any good answers). Good ole 'Cigarette burns' torture is more of the type of thing to be employed by a thug like Fontaine on a dame. --- --- --- Fuckatlas2.jpg|Poster we should have seen Wanted-10000ADAM-Reward2.jpg|Might have been a very quick end to Ryan's problem with Atlas if such a logical thing was done (the games plot was in general not too logical). Bounty.jpg --- --- --- ALTAS : I've misspelled Atlas as "Altas" a number of times, and hey - *IDEA* : Some guy pretends to be 'Atlas' calls himself 'Altas" and starts cashing in - scamming Fontaine. Of course Atlas don't like it, but Splicers are crazy (and dyslexia is a ADAM side effect?), so all kinds of stupid things happen before 'Altus' gets a crowbar upside the head and Fontaine can then go on with his overcomplicated 'Ace in the Hole' plan. --- --- --- Fontaine the Literary Giant : http://bioshock.wikia.com/wiki/File:Book_FONTAINE_BOOK_DIFF_%28Cover%29.png We never see any of these later in BS1/BS2 because the inmates at "Fontaine's" used up 'the book stockpile' as TP(Toilet Paper) during their internment. Sofia Lamb was smart enough to add abrasive glass fibers to the paper of her book "Metamorphosis" to forstall that same likely fate for it. --- --- --- Fontaine's Plan C - After 'Jack' WYK (Plan B) (Plan A which was Fontaine just trying to take over the City of Rapture with his Spliced minions (back when the Constables barely had any weapons), but was headed off by Ryan going after him for Smuggling at Neptunes Bounty - The Shootout-- Followed by an assassination attempt upon Ryan - which was staging for Fontaine's later plans). I'm not sure where "Leaving Rapture with the ADAM goodies to become rich on the Surface" fell into these set of plans. Fontaine DID already have that submarine we saw in Smugglers Hideout (unless Ryan had already disabled it (not disclosed in game), and thus could be used by Fontaine as a prop in his WYK 'fool Jack' plan). --- --- --- Peachy's Food From The Sea : Peach(y) Wilkins ran Fontaine Fisheries for 'the City' after Fontaine was killed. Coerced (or convinced) into playing stoolie (turning 'States Evidence') for Ryan/Sullivan to get the evidence proof needed to arrest and convict Fontaine. Consider that Wilkins was forced by Fontaine into virtual slavery (Audio Diary - "Putting the Screws On") and into the Smuggling operation also. With Fontaine dead, the fishing operations would continue with most of the the personnel who had previously operated it (and any surviving Owners whom Fontaine had 'strong armed' out of their fishing businesses, might be back). --- --- --- ' "What I Miss is Popcorn and Rum" (McDonagh) ' "Popcorn and Rum for EVERYONE" (Atlas's Lies seen on a MMORPG Poster - Except its crossed out and 'The Popcorn is a Lie" is scrawled over it). ref from Halflife game DLC - PORTAL --- --- --- Fontaine's Plan D : 9/11/60 Several Bathyspheres full of explosives fly into Rapture Tower at Welcome Center, causing collapse and flooding of most of the building. Death toll well over 100. Ryan doubles the 10000 ADAM Bounty on Atlas's head and calls on all citizens to eliminate the remaining Anarchist and Terrorists - Dead or Alive. --- --- --- "My Name Is Atlas, And I Aim To Keep You Alive" (Entering 'Welcome Center') : He sends Johnny (not that other one) to get you out of the Bathysphere, who is promptly slaughtered by a Splicer. Shouldn't that be a clue to you about Atlas ? (Couldn't he have had 'Johnny' go help his family out of that sub?? Instead he throws him away like a spent tissue paper.) At that point, Rapture is all very strange and you are too busy playing with all the game widgets to notice this (or if you did, you are given no options to do anything about it in any case ...). And so the farce picks up steam, and you have little choice - You are a puppet, a pawn in a story that grows ever more absurd. Ryan is 'so Evil!!', Atlas says "Boy-oh", Boom boom bang bang, "Mr Bubbles!"(awwwww), "A man chooses"(splat), SilverSurfer: "You mook"(arrrgh!!), Back to the Surface("yaaay"), The End. --- --- --- Yes "Rabble" - A good descriptive for many of the people shown as Atlas's followers. : ''' In the revised (Retro) BaSx Canon, many of Atlas's follower are shown to be criminals/crazy. Exactly how would having THEM as followers impress any new ones out amongst the 'poor' of Rapture ?? Scare-off many, leaving others who might not care much about the conventions of any society. Being 'The Boss' while not playing/appearing 'the boss' ("See, I'm just like you") could be rather difficult when some softer 'poor' people are to be dealt with. How many of these 'rebels' existed ? - any number would be rather difficult to provide for (you can't hand out a limited supply of food for very long - example - the "Department Store" was cutoff - remember ?), and even stealing from shops doesn't last very long when the production ceases -- the harder types start seizing from the weaker ones as long as there is anything left). Same goes for BS1 'Atlas' stirring up crowds Ghost Stories see). Following someone who 'tells them what they want to hear' - go kill people and I'll give you some canned food ... SO they wreck things and then complain that things don't work any more. Alot of people aren't stupid enough to destroy things that keep them alive. Many are crazy/unstable from ADAM ? Would all the rest of the previously allowed drugs in Rapture have not long previous produced the same type of people ? A deranged person can do plenty of damage/destruction without ADAM even being involved (but those were handled apparently just fine BEFORE). So ADAM was cheaper (to make a bigger sudden plague...) ??? To use it for the 'rush' or 'high' (over those other quite effective drugs) ??? Is it only when you abuse it that is has such effects ?? (it story-wise conveniently took so long to happen for people NOT to realize it till 'surprise' it suddenly is there a major problem -- Rapture isnt such a BIG place that it could be so easily overlooked). 'Drug users' willingly disabling themselves IS parasitic and quite detrimental to one's survival and lowers the regard paid by other Citizens - hard to stay hidden. You have to remember that in those days such addicted drug users/abusers WERE considered 'bums' by the majority. Where does one get the money for ADAM if it is expensive (and then to abuse it) ? Normal use then would have been causing it ??? So the game story wasn't handled particularly cleverly - only forced as the 'plot' required. ADAM brain damage is making Citizens stupid enough to follow Atlas or other Anarchists ? SUch should have been reported almost immediately in the City, and Fontaine put out of business for selling poison (Rapture's 'Wonder' advanced medicine (predating ADAM) should have had plenty of experts around capable of spotting this hazard). Such brain damage would have been spotted at that early time then - shouldn't it ? Oops its not part of 'the narrative' to allow Fontaine/Atlas to be known for what they actually were -- known to (apparently) simpleton-filled Rapture, and thence to the Player. Attacking the systems and people who maintain the City -- suicidal stupidity. "If I can't have it then burn it down ..." Yes, that's a message that would go over big with Rapture's population - even the dissatisfied ones. 'Atlas Will Free US !!!' (What the 'rebels' allegedly want ...) - '''What ? To now be up on The Surface (Lighthouse) and to head for wherever ?? In the world of ~1950 there hardly is much convenient welfare state (not even 1960), or earlier as most people there would remember the World (from the time they came from it - when it was much still in a shambles). Is it a 'good plan' to die of exposure ? Or the stampede (that is if the Bathysphere doesn't break down before a fraction of these 'Leavers' can get out ... to wherever they think they can get). So Atlas (that humble fisherman) will run things ? Or it will just be everyone will somehow simply still make things work ? (I Estimate merely 1 year before all of Rapture malfunctions and was rendered lifeless for THAT scenario). "Work for Atlas or Die" is hardly conducive to making that happen ("In six months we'll be stealing Erno's nose!" as Woody Allen in "Sleeper" said about revolution). Atlas is leaving (to sell his 'tech' to become a Big Man Up There) ? So does he need a pack of degenerated humans loose to demonstrate to the World what ADAM-use does to you ??? So he probably DOESN'T want them to escape - it was only a ploy to disrupt Ryan's control. Fontaine would even kill them once HE had the power if needed. If he could stash stuff for his 'revolution' why not just have a submarine hidden away to escape with ?? (He hid the Smuggling base for so long, so one sub shouldn't have been that hard. Instead he lets himself get trapped/cornered - OK for the stupider BaSx Fontaine/Atlas, but untypical for the supposedly clever BS1/BS2 Fontaine) Fontaine/Atlas probably fears having to be near all these crazies. They are unpredictable and might suddenly take a liking to his Face --- to want to wear it as a mask!!! (or maybe eat it) SO HE is really under siege more than Ryan is by all those Splicers. WHO can Fontaine really trust ??? These dissatisfied people, THEY Can't work? Won't work ? In Rapture, for jobs that are needed, the wages go up (So you wouldn't work as a farmer even just to feed yourself ???? Even with mechanization, food growing still required some labor.) There would be plenty of work to keep Rapture alive - Ryan would need work done and would pay the going price. And labor/'work' really would not be 'assembly line' type production much, so there's alot more hands-on work - jobs available just for producing basics -- and you don't really need all the luxuries when things get tough. So are these dissatisfied people all starving "Artists" ? Well, they probably would have starved in 1952 and be long gone by now ('artist' is a dubious career). Didn't read the brochure ? And just thought Rapture was gonna be their free ticket ride ?? Such people weren't knowingly allowed in (to Rapture), and those who slipped in would be a minority when the REST of People wouldn't want to kowtow to any Parasites (its WHY they came). Militia fighting for the sane/loyal majority (the unheard-from people the game kept hidden) - THEY would have Atlas and his terrorists mopped up/destroyed inside a month (the majority would just say KILL THEM) - and the WOULD have been exterminated like Parasites. Rapture WAS NOT our modern day touchy-feeley, overtolerant, parasitical welfare state (the writers seem to have forgotten that). --- --- --- --- --- . .